Recommended Episodes

• Secret #76: Ageism
• Secret #75: Impossible Masculinity
• Secret #72: Transforming Guilt and Shame

Why does it feel like no matter how much we do, it’s never enough?

In this episode, Kerry Makin-Byrd breaks down the paradox of overwhelm and why so many of us feel stuck between doing too much and still feeling like we’re falling behind. We explore the difference between stress, burnout, and overwhelm, and why overwhelm isn’t just about having too much to do.

Kerry introduces a practical framework to navigate overwhelm in real time, helping us understand how our nervous system, environment, and expectations all contribute to feeling overloaded. This conversation is both deeply validating and immediately actionable for anyone feeling stretched too thin.

Key Takeaways

• What overwhelm actually feels like in the body and mind
• The difference between overwhelm, burnout, and stress
• Why burnout is often driven by systems not individuals
• How to soothe, transcend, and move through overwhelm
• Why doing more is often the trap that keeps us stuck

View extended shownotes here

• ORDER Max Cross Gets Unstuck from Anger: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook series for kids)
• ORDER Justin Case Sits with Anxiety: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook Series for Kids)
• ORDER The Glumm Twins Unhook from Sadness: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook Series for Kids)

Recommended Episodes

• Secret #72: Transforming Guilt and Shame
• Secret #74: The Cost of Pretending
• Secret #75: Impossible Masculinity

What if aging isn’t the problem—but our beliefs about aging are?

In this episode, we discuss ageism with Dr. Claudia Drossel. Together, we explore how aging is often misunderstood as decline, when in reality many of the challenges we associate with aging are shaped by cultural bias, environment, and access to support.

This conversation reframes aging as a form of diversity, challenges common myths about loneliness, health, and capability, and explores how our environments, relationships, and societal structures influence quality of life across the lifespan.

We also examine how subtle forms of ageism show up in everyday language, healthcare, and social systems—and what we can do to change them.

Key Takeaways

• Why ageism is one of the most overlooked forms of bias
• The difference between aging and disease
• How culture shapes our experience of getting older
• Why quality of relationships matters more than quantity
• How to create more inclusive, intergenerational communities

View extended shownotes here

• ORDER Max Cross Gets Unstuck from Anger: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook series for kids)
• ORDER Justin Case Sits with Anxiety: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook Series for Kids)
• ORDER The Glumm Twins Unhook from Sadness: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook Series for Kids)

Recommended Episodes

• Secret #73: The Confidence Paradox
• Secret #72: Transforming Guilt and Shame
• Secret #74: The Cost of Pretending

What does it actually mean to raise boys in a culture that both expects masculinity and criticizes it?

In this episode, journalist and author Ruth Whippman joins Chris McCurry and Emma Waddington to explore the pressures boys face in the age of “impossible masculinity.” Drawing from her book BoyMom, Ruth explains how cultural narratives about masculinity shape boys’ emotional lives, relationships, and sense of identity.

The conversation explores the surprising science of boys’ emotional development, the cultural contradictions boys must navigate today, and why many young men feel lost when it comes to friendship, vulnerability, and connection. Ruth also shares practical guidance for parents raising boys today and introduces her framework of curiosity, critical thinking, and connection.

• Raising boys in the age of impossible masculinity
• Why boys may be more emotionally vulnerable than we assume
• How cultural stereotypes shape boys’ emotional lives
• The importance of curiosity and connection when raising boys

View extended shownotes here

• ORDER Max Cross Gets Unstuck from Anger: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook series for kids)
• ORDER Justin Case Sits with Anxiety: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook Series for Kids)
• ORDER The Glumm Twins Unhook from Sadness: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workbook for Ages 8-12 (ACT Workbook Series for Kids)